Garment pressing machine



April 14, 1942- w. sTRoBRlDGE GARMENT PRESSING MACHINE y 2 Sheets-Sheet. 1

Filed Oct. 16, 1939 Pll 14, 1942- w. sTRoBRlDGE 2,279,599

GARMENT PRESSING MACHINE Filed oct. 1e, i959 2 sheets-sheet 2 Bg www Patented Apr. 14, 1942 OFFICE GARMEN T PRESSING MACHINE William Strobridge, Syracuse, N. Y., assignor to United States Hoffm New York, N. Y.,

an Machinery Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Application October 16, 1939, Serial No. 299,773 8 Claims. I (Cl. 38-15) lIhis invention relates to garment pressing machines and more particularly to means for controlling the steam spray to the pressing elements of such machines.

In the prior art it has been proposed to provide the pressing elements of a garment pressing machine with means for supplying steam to the steam chambers of the movable pressing element or head, and to the fixed pressing element or buck. In such arrangements the control means have been duplicated for the two elements. All such known arrangements of the prior art have ,required numerous operating parts and have been particularly objectionable not /only because of the large number of control elements required, but also because they do not leave both of the operators hands free to position the garments being steamed. The present arrangement is designed to overcome the 'disadvantages pointed out above and to otherwise improve and simplify steam spray control for garment pressing machines.

The main object of the present invention is to simplify and unify the mechanism for the control of the steam spray of pressing machines and to leave both hands of the operator free during a steaming operation. Another object is to arrange the parts so that one mechanism may be employed to apply steam to either of the pressing elements under the selective control of the operator.

Other objects of the invention will appear from the following description when it is read in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a side view partly in section of a garment pressing machine having one form of steam spray control mechanism embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a detail View showing the selecting mechanism of the present invention;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on line III-III of. Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a detail view of a portion of the steam valve controlling mechanism associated with the fixed pressing member or buck of the machine;

Fig. 5 is a side view similar to Fig. 1, but showing a modified form of steam spraycontrol mechanism; and

Fig. 6 is a detail view valve suitable for use on element of the machine.

In the drawings, reference character II designates generally the frame of a garment pressing of one form of steam the movable pressing machine having a forward upstanding portion I2 carrying a iixed pressing element or buck I3, and a rear upstanding portion I 4 about which the head carrying lever I5 is pivoted at I6. The lever I5 carries the usual movable pressing element or head I'l cooperating with the buck I3 and having the usual counter-balancing weight I8. Inasmuch as these parts are conventional and the invention is concerned not with the structural elements of the machine but with the steam spray mechanism, it will be sufiicient for the purposes of the present invention to describe these parts briefly. The movable head I'I is operated by tWo sets of toggles designated 2| and 22 under the control of. a foot pedal '23. Spring I9 tends to lift theheadfto open the press. As shown, the mechanism includes a buffer `2|I against which toggle 2I strikes in its straightened or press closing position,l and a spring 25 for assisting in the opening ofthe press when the toggle 22 is broken. Fulcrum 26 of toggle 22 is carried on the frame of the machine in any convenient manner. l

The head I'I is also assisted in its opening` movement by thev counter-weight I8 and spring I9, and is closed by manipulation of vfoot pedal 23 and operating handle 2l. The pressingelements I3 and I1 may embody any usual construction which includes hollow steam heating chambers with perforated faces which usually carry padding contacting with the garments to be pressed. In such machines desirable and benecial to at timesspray steam from the steam chambers in the elements to the garment contacting portions/of the elements.l

This steam assists in the shaping and pressing-y operation as Well as tending to raise the nap on the cloth. The present invention is concerned with the utilization of a single mechanism pro` viding for manual selection of the spray of rsteam from the head or from the buck, that is, means are provided under the convenient control of the operator for spraying steam-from either the head or the buck at will, through a single operating mechanism with interposed manual se-A lecting means.

In Fig. 1 and by Way of' illustration the buck I3 is shown as having a source of steam supply 28 for delivering steam to its steam heating chamber, whence it can be directed outwardly from the buck onto the 3|. Similarly, the head I'I has a steam connection 32 for supplying steam to its steam heating chamber whence it it has been found garment by the opening of a. steam control valve 29 having an operating rod.

may be directed outwardly p from the head under the control of a valve 33;

be suicient to say that when these valves are of the type illustrated, they are opened by steam pressure from the steam chambers which they supply. The valve 33, for example, includes anV operating stem 34 which is biased downwardly by a spring 30 to hold the valve closed against the steam pressure. The valve may be opened selectively by either a manually operable lever 35 or through a connection 39 under the -control of a foot pedal. As pointed out in the above application, depressing of hand lever 35 lifts the left hand end of link 35 against the action oi spring 30, to disengage it from the operating stem 34, permitting the steam to open the valve.

When the lever 35 is released, the biasing spring 30 closes the valve. When lever 39 is pulled, the right 'hand end of link 36 is lifted through lever 4I in response to the operation of the vfootpedal to op-en the valve. As shown in Fig. l, the hand operated lever 35 is associated with the 'handle 21 of the head, providing for convenient linger-tip control of the steam valve for the head. The operating lever 33 for the valve .33 is connected by a rod 42 to a bent lever 43 pivoted at `44. The lever 43 also carries an arm 45 connected through rod `46 to a bellcrank lever 41 pivoted at 48. One arm of the lever 41 is likewise connected by a rod 49 to an arm 5i attached to a collar 52 which is freely rotatable about a shaft 53. This collar '2 carries a lug 54 adapted for cooperation with lug 55 on a pivoted selecting lever 55 carried by a collar 51, also freely rotatable about the shaft 53. Collar 51 carries a lug 58 connected by a biasing or vtoggle spring 59 to a similar lug 6| on the selecting lever 56. Selecting lever 56 is pivoted at 62 and may be swung to either of two positions as shown in Fig. 2, and is held there by the toggle spring 59.

In its right-hand or dotted line position, lug 55 engages lug f54 so that actuation of collar 51 will cause 'the two lcollars 51 and 52 to move together to operate the valve 33. Rotation of collar 51 is brought about through a rod 63 pivotally -connected to an arm 64 on the collar 51. Rod '53 'is connected to a foot pedal 65 which is biased upwardly, that is in a valve closing direction, by a spring 66. Similar bias is imposed upon `the operating linkage of valve 33 by spring 61. f

In `its left-hand or 'full'line position `of Fig. 2, lug 68 of selecting lever 56 passes into operative engagement with a lug 69 carried on a sleeve 1l which is rotatable vwith the shaft 573, and is held thereon by means such as a set screw 12. A coil spring 13 attached to a lmember 14 secured on shaft 53 is attached to the `frame of the machine at 15 so-as to bias the shaft 53 and the sleeve 1| to a predetermined position, in which valve operating arm 16 on member 14 occupies a position where the valve 29 controlling the steam spray to the buck I3 is closed.

As shown in Fig.' 4, the arm 16 is slotted at 11 to .receive the lower end of operating rod 3| of valve 29. This rod carries a stop nut 13 which is held in predetermined-position by a lock nut 19. When lever 56 is in its full line position so that lugs 68 and 69 are engaged, downward movement of rod 63 by foot pedal 65 rotates sleeve 51 and transmits this rotational movement to theshait 53 and the arm 16 so as to release the pressure exerted by the arm against the stop nut 18 and permit the valve 29 to open by gravity and steam pressure. When the foot pedal 65 is released, it is restored to its normal position by spring 66 while the coil spring 13 rotates member 14 to restore the arm 16 to valveclosing position.

It will be clear that although the head steam valve 33 may be controlled in the usual manner through hand lever 35, it may also be operated at will by foot pedal 65 provided the lever 56 is in its dotted line position leaving both of the operators hands free. Also that by moving the lever 56 to its full line position, the foot pedal 65 may be caused to operate the buck steam valve 29, thus providing for selective operation vof valves 29 and 33 and for supplying spray steam from either the head or the buck by the same operating pedal. It requires nothing other than movement of the selecting lever 56 irom one position to the other to effectuate a change inA connection from the head to the buck or vice versa, and toggle spring 59 insures that the lever will always be moved to its full operative position in either direction.

In Fig. 1, operation of the head steam valve 33 is shown as being carried out through a system of rods and levers. `Ihe same result may be accomplished by the means shown in Fig. 5. In Fig. 5, the parts are similar to those of Fig. l, except that the connection provided between the sleeve .52 carrying the lug 54 and the operating lever 39 of the steam valve 133 is eiected through a Bowden wire 8|. To provide for this'operating connection, the collar 52a carries a downwardly depending arm 82 to which one end of the Bowden wire is connected. The casing for the Bowden wire is mounted in clamps v83 and 84 carried by the frame of the machine and the head carrying lever l5, respectively. The Bowden wire has its one end secured at 35 to the lever 39, and its other end to the lower end of lever 82. It will be obvious without further eX- planation that in the modification of Fig. 5, depressing oi pedal 65 with the selecting lever 56 in its dotted line position will open valve .33 and thus supply steam to the face of the head I1. Likewise that when the pedal 65 is released, spring 66 will restore the pedal to normal position. The valve 29 will, of course, be operated as in Fig. 1.

In the present disclosure the invention has been illustrated as applied to a well known type of press, but it is to be understood that the application of the inventive thought is not limited to the particular press shown. It may be applied to any garment pressing machine having relatively movable pressing members to which it is desired to supply steam spray during a pressing operation, It should also be pointed out that although two forms of head valve operating mechansm are disclosed, the invention is directed to the selective control oi steam from either the head lor the buck through a unitary means, regardless of the particular operating mechanism employed. Consequently, no other limitations than those expressed in the claims are to be implied.

What is claimed is:

l. Ina garment press, apair of relatively movable pressing members; steam spray means connected to both of said members; a spray control valve on each of said members and connected to said spray means; and means comprising a single pedal for causing operation of either of said valves selectively, and a hand lever for connecting said pedal operatively to either of said valves to perform the selection.

2. In a garment press, a pair of relatively movable pressing members; a source of steam for both of said pressing members to eiect a steam spraying operation; a control valve on each of said members and connected to said source; a foot pedal for operating either of said valves; and manually operable selecting means for connecting said foot pedal into operative relation with either of said valves.

3. A garment press comprising head and buck members; a source of steam connected to both of said members; a steam control valve on each of said members and connected to said source; means operated by a single pedal for actuating either of said valves; and hand operable means for performing a selection and operatively connecting said pedal operated means to either of said valves.

4. A garment press comprising relatively movable head and buck members; a source of steam connected to each of said members; a steam spray control valve on each of said members; a foot pedal; operating linkage for the head valve, said linkage including a system of links and levers; operating linkage for the buck valve; and

a selecting lever for connecting said foot pedal to either of said linkages to operate either of said valves selectively.

5. A garment press comprising relatively movable head and buck members; a source of steam connected to each of said members; a steam spray control valve on each of said members; a foot pedal; a Bowden wire connection to the head valve; linkage for operating the buck valve; and a pivoted selecting lever for connecting said foot pedal into operative relation with either said Bowden Wire or said linkage to -operate said valves selectively. 6. A garment press comprising relatively movable head and buck members; a source of steam for each of said members; a steam spray control valve on each of said members; a pivoted selecting lever mounted on the machine, said lever having two positions one foroperating the valve of the head member and the other for operating the valve of the buck member; and a foot pedal connected to said lever and arranged to operate either of said valves. d

7. A garment press comprising relatively movablehead and buck members; a source of steam for each of said members; a steam spray control valve on each of said members; a selecting lever mounted on the machine, said lever having two positions one for operating the valve of the head member and the other for operating the valve of the buck member; a linkage between said lever and the valve on the buck member; a linkage system between said lever and the valve on the head member; and means operated by a single pedal for actuating one or the other of said valves depending upon the position of said selecting lever.

8. A garment press comprising relatively movable head and buck members; a source of steam for each of said members; a steam spray control valve on each of said members; a pivoted selecting lever mounted on the machine, said lever having two positions one for operating the valve of the head member and the other for operating the valve of the buck member; a linkage between said selecting lever and the valve on the buck member; a Bowden Wire between the valve on the head member and said selecting lever; and means operated by a single pedal for actuating either said linkage or said Bowden Wire, depending upon the position of the selecting lever.

WILLIAM STROBRIDGE. 

